Sergeant Emma Swan
by JMolover13
Summary: Emma Swan was and is a Marine. Regina sees her in her dress blues on Veterans Day.


**gamergirloracle asked you: Swan Queen: Because her she was in juvie for her offense, Emma was able to join the military to get her life in order(i'm thinking Marines). She goes with Henry to SB just like the show, they celebrate Veterans Day and she joins the parade and party held after in her Dress Blues. Regina finds that she loves Emma in uniform.**

**AN: I did some research, but not being all that familiar with the Marine Corps other than the name and the song, I hope that—if there are readers in the Corps or with family or friends in the Corps—that I did them justice. Granted I really only focus on it in reflection, I still hope that this piece is respectful for all these men and women do.**

Emma walked into the town hall and made her way through the winding hallways before finally coming to the mayor's office. She wasn't sure what to expect when she saw her that morning. Lately things had been… changing to say the least. There was something familiar and all too comfortable with the brunette, and it scared Emma.

There was this intense feeling that she had only felt once before during her recruit training all those years ago. Another girl, Amanda, she trained alongside with for 8 of the 12 weeks didn't abide by 'Don't Ask Don't Tell'. She and Emma had had a long drawn out conversation before she left, and after she was gone, Emma found a five-page love letter on her pillow. She'd never felt anything like it before. It was the most intense thing that had happened to her at that point in her life… even having a kid was not as intense—of course she didn't let it be intense at all. She told the doctors that she didn't want to see it, and after it was gone, they told it was a baby boy.

She bit her lip as she saw the mayor's door come into view. She imagined that this was exactly how the Amanda felt about her. Emma didn't understand at the time that she felt the attraction as well, but even if she did acknowledge it, she knew that the Marine Corps was her last chance at an okay life and she wouldn't have given it up… But every time Amanda went into detail about her love for her, Emma knew she felt the same about Regina. She shook her head and knocked on the door; the secretary was gone for whatever reason at the moment so she had to resort to manners.

"Come in." She heard.

Emma walked in and shut the door behind her. She turned to see Regina standing up, straightening her skirt… and she looked goooooood! Emma turned her head away from the brunette, but still managed to face her, "You wanted to see me, Madam Mayor?"

"Deputy Swan. Yes." She gestured the woman into the room more, "As you know tomorrow is the Veterans Day celebration."

"Yes ma'am." At the word Veteran, Emma felt herself dive back into the Marine within her. She stood evenly, her legs shoulder width apart, her hands behind her back.

"Sheriff Graham might need assistance with everything, so I need you to be aware of everything that is going on."

Emma nodded, "Yes ma'am."

"And since this is a formal event for our veterans, I expect you both to be in uniform. Remind him, though I think he'll remember because I've had him wear it for formal events such as this since he was instated. But you refused flat out when he asked you to. I am making sure that I will not tolerate disrespect for the men and woman of Storybrooke that fought for this country."

"Yes ma'am."

Regina knit her brows, "What no fight?"

Emma shook her head.

Regina's curious look stayed on her face, but she let the woman go, "Alright then… that was all."

~0~0~0~0~0~

Emma and Graham were leaving that night when Graham noticed her deputy uniform still hanging on the coat rack.

"Emma…" He went over to it and gave her a scolding look.

"I don't need that." She tried to walk out of the station, but he stopped her.

"You told the Mayor that this wouldn't be a problem. You told her you'd wear this uniform."

"No, I didn't." She gave him a look.

"Yes, you—"

"I told her that I would be in uniform for tomorrow's Veterans Day celebration." She nodded, before looking him dead on, "I, Sergeant Emma Swan of the United States Marines, did ten years ago and still do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to the regulations and the uniform code of military justice. So help me God." She took a breath and looked down, "I'm a Marine. I respect being deputy and I respect my job, but I'll be in my dress blues for the celebration of our nation's Armed Forces."

Graham's brows had risen so high that they couldn't be seen. He opened his mouth a couple times to speak, but nothing came out. So, he simply walked back over to the coat rack and hung the uniform back up. He looked at her again as he made his way for the door and nodded. He clapped her on the shoulder, "Thank you for your service, Sergeant."

Emma nodded and let him walked a few feet, "I'm not planning on some big reveal, or whatever… But I didn't want it to be a thing…" She looked at him.

He grinned, "Well, with everyone seeing you in your uniform tomorrow, I assure you, deputy… It's going to be a thing." He chuckled.

"That's what I was afraid of… Then the questions will start."

"The questions?"

"Why did you join? What's your rank? What's that mean? What did you do? And so on and so forth…"

He looked at her, "Why did you join?"

"It was my last chance at a decent shot in life. I either joined a branch the Armed Forces or I wasted away."

He nodded, "That is a question that you shouldn't have to answer, especially since it's followed with another…"

"What?"

"Why Marines?"

Emma knit her brows, "There's something about our intensity, I was pulled to. We're the first to the fight…" She shrugged, "Semper fidelis." She mumbled.

Graham raised a questioning brow, "I'm sorry, my Latin handbook is in my other pants…"

Emma smiled, "It means always faithful. I needed that. I needed something in my life to be always faithful. So I picked the Marines."

"And tomorrows you get to tell everyone that multiple times." He said with faux excitement. She slumped a little, "No worries, Sergeant, I'll try and buffer as best I can."

~0~0~0~0~0~

The Veterans Day celebration was a barbeque and festivities event that took up the town square… like really any holiday did. Emma only told her roommate that she had to wear her uniform. She didn't tell her which uniform she was wearing. She told Mary Margaret a long time ago that she had served, but she didn't think that the other woman would remember until she walked out.

She buckled her white belt and took one last look over herself. Her hair was pulled in a low, tight bun, her buttons were shiny, as was her buckle; everything was crisp and straight. She knew that she should wear the skirt, but it was bitter in Maine in November, so she opted for her slacks. She made sure her shoes were shined and not too scuffed, then she pulled on her gloves and reached for her hat. She tucked it under her shoulder just as a soft knock came to her bedroom door.

"Emma? Are you almost ready? The festival is about to start."

"Yeah, I'll be right out. Go ahead and grab your purse." Emma looked herself over once more then nodded before opening the door. Her shoes clicked against the wood of the floor and the metal of the spiral staircase as she made her way down.

Mary Margaret was looking at her in awe, "Emma…" she walked over to her and took the blonde's face in her hands in a motherly way, "You look so nice in your uniform." She swallowed as she pulled back and looked at her again, "I'm glad you picked that one over the deputy uniform. I was wondering, but hoping you'd opt for this." She clasped her hands together; her eyes shown with admiration.

Emma nodded and moved her hat from under her arm, "Shall we?" She gave her roommate her arm to escort her to the square.

"We shall, Sergeant!"

~0~0~0~0~0~

They were a little late… Emma's nerves were getting to her, and she took her precious time getting ready. When they got there, everything was in full swing.

Ruby's jaw dropped and her eyes opened wide. She clapped her hands, pushed on Belle, Kathryn and Ashley then walked a few feet and opened her arms wide.

"Oh my God!" Ruby said as Mary Margaret pulled her arm and pushed Emma towards her. She hugged her tight, "You look so sexy." She whispered.

"Nah." Emma looked down in a blush.

"You do! Look at you!" She pulled from the blonde and let the other women look her way, "I didn't know you served…"

Emma nodded, "Yes, from the day I was released from the hospital after having Henry to a year and a half before Henry found me." She stood tall and took her hat off, placing it under her arm.

Kathryn smiled, "Well thank you for your service." She reached her hand out, which Emma took.

"Yes, thank you." Belle said and Emma nodded her direction.

"Yeah!" Ashley said, "I mean, I should thank you for a lot more than your service…" She gestured down to the baby in her arms that cooed and reached for the shiny buttons of Emma's uniform.

Emma smiled gestured for a trade of hat and baby and took Alexandra so that she wouldn't cry. She let the baby play and pull on her buttons for a moment and smiled as she held the little girl in her arms, "Hello, princess." Alexandra looked up at her and patted her cheek before resuming grabbing the shiny objects. Ruby took the hat from Ashley and put it on.

Henry yelled as he ran over to her, "EMMA!"

Emma turned to see her son running away from his mother and catching his mother's eyes. She nodded towards the mayor who only stared on. She turned back, and gave Alexandra back to Ashley. She turned to ruby and stretched her hand out.

"Fine, but only because I know that you could probably kick my ass." She took the hat off and put it back on the blonde.

Emma waved at them all, "Well, I've been spotted…" She said as she put her arm around Henry, "I should… face the music." She gestured to the mayor and the rest of the women smiled and nodded along… except for Mary Margaret, who gave her a knowing smile.

As if on cue, the band in the gazebo began the Marina Corps Hymn. The director wasn't looking at his band, he was looking at Emma, waiting to see what she would do.

She smiled, stopped her trek and stood at ease and listened. She sung the words in her head and acknowledged the band with a nod towards the director, who had been singing loud and proud with every verse. She then looked at Henry who was standing next to her, "Let's go see your mom, kid."

He nodded, "Why didn't you tell me that you were in the army?"

"Because that would have been a lie." Emma smiled.

"What?"

"I'm a Marine, Henry. It's different."

"Oh… Well how come you didn't tell me you were in the Marines?"

Emma sighed, "I don't know kid… I just… I didn't want to deal with the hubbub, I guess…"

Henry nodded, "You don't like hubbub."

Emma chuckled, "I really don't." She messed up his hair.

He grinned and looked up at her, "What does the three marks on your patch mean?"

"It's my rank."

"What's your rank?"

Emma smiled, "I'm a Sergeant."

"Cool!" They got closer to Regina, "Hi Mom. Emma's a Sergeant of the Marines! Can I go play with Ava and Nicholas? Thanks, bye!" He ran from the two of them.

Regina turned to Emma, "A Marine Sergeant?"

The blonde gave her a closed mouth smile, "Yes, ma'am."

"And this was why you didn't have a problem with wearing your uniform?"

This garnered a laugh, "I guess you could say that…" She looked at her, "But honestly, Madam Mayor, between the two, aren't my dress blues more appealing?"

Regina swallowed and looked her up and down, then to her eyes, "I must say, Deputy, they are easier on the eyes."

Emma stared at Regina as if she were star-struck a moment.

"Deputy are you alright?"

Emma looked down at the ground. She shuffled her feet, "Fine Madam Mayor."

Regina knit her brows, "Okay…?"

"There's… There's something I've been meaning to ask you…"

"Which is?" Regina smiled.

"I-I-I can't ask you now…" she looked around, "With all the people… It's more a private matter…"

Regina knit her brows, "Well… after I give my speech thanking you and our other vets, maybe we can go across the street to Granny's? It's rather empty…"

Emma nodded, "Yeah, I'd… Yeah…"

A few minutes later, Regina got up on stage and did her thing. She glanced over to Emma a few times and gave a small special thank you to their newest town member and her service, then after a few members asking her about a few matters that really should have waited for the town meeting, she made her way over to Emma.

Emma at this point was with Mary Margaret, who knew all her deep dark secrets, "Well Deputy?" Emma smiled up to her, and she looked to the schoolteacher, "Do you mind if I steal our Sergeant away, Miss Blanchard?"

"No, of course not, Madam Mayor, take your time."

Emma, who had take off her gloves as well as her hat, placed her hat under her arm and gestured for the Mayor to lead. They walked inside the diner and sat across from each other in one of the many vacant booths. They left the lights off because there was plenty of natural daylight still. Emma set her hat down and stared at the bill.

"Deputy…?"

"Sorry… I just… don't know how to phrase it…" She gave the other woman a timid smile.

Regina couldn't help but return and said, "Take your time."

Emma nodded. She opened her mouth, then decided against it and shook her head. A moment later she opened her mouth once more and let the words fall out, "Have you ever been attracted to a woman?"

Regina's brows shot up, "I… Uhm.. Well…" She thought for a moment then stared at the girl before her who refused to look at her, "Yes… once."

"Really?" The same, big timid green eyes chanced a glance toward the brunette. Regina nodded her confirmation before she lost sight of green and was staring at the top of a blonde head again, "Me too… just once." She bit her lip, "I've been liked by a girl once too… I know how she feels now…" She swallowed.

"So this woman that you like… She's not in your past?"

Emma shook her head, telling Regina her answer.

Regina decided to start guessing, "Is it Ruby? Please keep in mind that she's a flirt and she probably doesn't reciprocate your feelings… The last thing I need is you love struck over some waitress…"

Emma grinned, "It's not Ruby."

"Belle? She's single, but her accent would get annoying over time… or you might start mimicking her and not be able to stop…"

The blonde now rolled her eyes, "It's not Belle."

"Kathryn? She's my friend, Emma Swan, and she's been through a lot lately—"

"It's not Kathryn."

"Oh God… She's not already married or engaged is she? She doesn't have a kid…?"

Emma shook her head once more and looked out the window, "It's not Ashley…" She chuckled, "I just… helped her keep Alexandra, so she let's me hang out with the kid every so often… it's not her…"

"Well then, who—Oh… God… It's not…" She looked at the blonde, "I mean, she… It can't be…"

Emma knit her brows, "Who?"

"It's not Mary Margaret is it?"

"Ew no! She's like my mom that's my age! She… she takes care of me kind of! Today she grabbed my face and practically pinched my cheeks to tell me how nice I looked in my uniform… 'Nice' not 'sexy' like Ruby, 'Nice' with a 'strapping' undertone… She… ew… no." She shook her head.

"Well, I give up. I've guessed a lot and I'm out."

Emma stared at her a bit longer, "She's the most beautiful woman in Storybrooke." She said seriously, "She is lovely… But you have to dig deep to get to the real her.. On the outside she's an H.B.I.C. type…"

"H.B.I.C.?"

"Head Bitch In Charge…"

Regina raised her brows, "Oh she is?"

"Yeah…" Emma swallowed hard and looked away.

"She sounds delightful." Regina said sarcastically, knowing, well, hoping she was talking about herself. "But like you said, I'll bet it's a mask and you have to dig to find the real her."

Emma nodded, "She's good but I think sometimes she believes her son when she says she's an evil queen… I forgot to mention she's got 10-year-old baggage…" She took a breath, "She pushes my buttons all the time and it only makes me angry and press all of hers…" She shook her head, "But everyday that passes, I only want her more…" the blonde bit her lip, "I don't think she realizes just how beautiful she is… And I mean, I already told you that she's the most beautiful woman in Storybrooke…" Her throat felt tight, but she kept on, "I don't know what happened to her to make her put on that mask everyday, that mask that you have to dig through to see the real her… But it had to be bad…" She finally looked at her, "But I think I can make her happy."

"Do you?"

"Yes ma'am… I do. See, we have three core values in the Marines: honor, courage, and commitment… I know that I'll be able to commit to her and honor her no problem… the only thing I'm having a problem with right now is the courage to tell her…"

Regina swallowed, "Maybe she already knows… or maybe she suspects… If I were you, I would just tell her the next time you see her…"

Emma looked at her, "You know who it is now?"

"I have a clue…"

"And you think I should just tell her?"

"Yes."

"Should I do anything else?"

"If it's who I suspect, I think she'd need solid, concrete proof that it was real… I think that she would need, at the very least, a kiss…"

Emma bit her lip and pushed from her side of the booth, "Well, this has been very enlightening. Thank you Madam Mayor." She offered Regina her hand to stand up.

Regina, a bit flustered and frustrated took her hand, "Of course!" She hissed, "Best of luck to you and you cheap, tawdry—Mmmmm!" The brunette had tried to pull from Emma's grasp, but Emma yanked her arm, pulled the woman into her hold and kissed her. Regina's arms wrapped themselves around her neck and Emma pulled her closer by the waist.

"You know it's you, Regina…" The blonde said as she pulled away.

"I thought it was, but then you pretended to act casually and it made me second guess myself…"

"You almost called yourself a whore." Emma chuckled.

"I did… And it's all your fault Sergeant. Just how are you going to make it up to me?"

"How about committing and honoring you until I die?"

Regina smiled, "That's a start."


End file.
